Truancy Center Also on the Table

Thursday, 16 September 2021, Shreveport

Possible use of the vacant Arthur Circle Elementary School campus for a truancy center will be discussed at the September 21 meeting the Broadmoor Neighborhood Association of Shreveport.

The meeting will begin at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday in the gymnasium of Broadmoor Presbyterian Church, 1915 Grover Place.

Since the truancy-center idea was floated by Caddo Parish School Board District 8 member Christine Tharpe, an alternative plan for private real-estate development has surfaced. The E&L Development Co., represented by Ken Lawler and son Jake of Blanchard, has offered a plan (see attachment) for construction of 25 single-family lots, a public green space and a commercial storage facility in the school buildings.

Jake Lawler said the proposal envisions homes on 60’ x 40’ lots selling in the $300,00-400,000 range and like other developments in Blanchard and south Shreveport. He said a proposed plan for the 12-acre development has been provided to select School Board members and Central Office staff.

Dr. Lamar Goree, Caddo School superintendent, said the Board has made no decisions on the Lawler and Tharpe proposals and talks are informal at this stage. Goree said the ultimate disposition of the Arthur Circle property, and that of also-closed Jack P. Timmons Elementary and Mooretown Elementary properties, is up to the 12-member School Board.

The Tharpe / Volunteers for Youth Justice plan calls for re-using the vacant, 65-year-old Arthur Circle campus as a multi-purpose service center to deal with truancy among youth from Caddo and surrounding parishes. Tharpe said she wants to hear concerns of Broadmoor neighbors before moving ahead with the idea.

The non-profit Volunteers for Youth Justice would be the primary “tenant” of the property, leasing it from the School Board. VYJ would, in turn, provide space to other organizations involved in school and parent services. Examples would be:

Tharpe said “The Center,” as it is being called, would provide a central location for these services to be offered to schools and parents.

The School Board closed Arthur Circle Elementary in 2020, kicking off discussion of what to do with the property and green space. BNA members and immediate neighbors met at the school in January with Tharpe, Goree and others. Various ideas were discussed, including demolition of the buildings and maintenance of the property as green space, sale of the property for real-estate development and other outcomes.

Tharpe said she was educated about increasing truancy among Caddo schoolchildren during a recent visit to Caddo Parish Juvenile Court. The problem has been made worse by COVID-19. She said creating a “one-stop shop” for juvenile services at Arthur Circle puts the property back into productive use.

When it closed Arthur Circle, the School Board transferred students to the new Broadmoor STEM Academy, a K-8th Grade facility housed in the former Broadmoor Middle Lab campus.

The Arthur Circle school complex was built in 1955. Additions were built in 1967 and 2003. The property comprises 12.7 acres.

At the January meeting one resident suggested the School Board sell the property for real-estate development. Goree said at the time the land is zoned by the City for single-family homes and could fetch an estimated $1 million in a sale. He said any project to develop the land would be evaluated on whether it “brought value” to the neighborhood.

At the September 21 meeting, BNA will consider a resolution urging the School Board to hire a professional land-use consulting firm to help the Board determine the best uses of the Arthur Circle, Timmons and Mooretown campuses.

Attachment
Bill Robertson
BNA Vice President
wgrobertson@gmail.com